A growing school tool

Susie Bower is a great believer in the value of school gardens. A fourth-grade teacher at Chico Country Day School, she spends much of her Fridays tending to and teaching in the school’s community garden.

On a recent walk through the garden, she pointed out broccoli plants that children “who normally don’t eat broccoli” snack on and sunflowers that second-graders planted and from which they learned how tiny seeds can turn into tall plants. She noted the mosaic stepping stones that art students had made and the lettuce grown in sufficient quantity to serve in the cafeteria salad bar once a week.

The garden at CCDS is one example of a phenomenon that is spreading rapidly: the use of gardens to provide hands-on learning in a wide range of subjects. At least half a dozen schools in the Chico area have gardens, and the number is steadily increasing.

And why not? Think of all the ways gardens can benefit students. Not only do they give kids a chance to connect with the earth and learn about the cycles of life and death, they also are living science, art and nutrition laboratories.

School gardens give life to the many topics covered in textbooks and present students the opportunity to interact and grasp knowledge in a practical manner.

A school garden can be used to teach every subject, from art to math and science, and can even be an inspiration for a student’s writing. At CCDS, children in every grade level not only work in the garden, but also do artwork, math exercises and writing based on it.

“It’s great for the students to see food go from the garden to the table,” Principal Paul Weber said. “It teaches children to eat healthy and, for many of the kids who have lived in cities their whole life, that food doesn’t come from supermarkets.”

Chico Country Day School moved to its new location at 102 West 11th Street, former site of Fair View High School, two years ago. With the help of Nord Country School’s garden volunteer, Ernie Dalton, and community fundraising, the students were able to replant the garden they were growing at their previous site.

The garden Dalton plants at Nord Country School is substantial. This year it produced 2,000 pounds—a ton—of wheat, said office manager Junell Lawrence. After students ground the wheat to flour, a bakery baked the bread that was served at the Harvest Festival, a fundraiser for the garden.

“Ernie has a huge garden at Nord and helps out at other schools’ gardens,” Bower said. “Parkview Elementary, Neal Dow Elementary and Citrus Elementary all have school gardens"—as does Chico Junior High.

Dalton, known as “Farmer Ernie” to students at Citrus Elementary, helped teacher Richard Aguilera start growing roses with his students at the school, Aguilera said. Both are members of the Butte Rose Society.

After growing the roses and using them to teach in his classroom, Aguilera applied for and received a $1,000 donation of supplies, plants and tools from the Orchard Supply Hardware School Gardens Program.

According to a press release, the program commemorates OSH’s 75th anniversary, and each of its 86 stores in California is partnering with a selected school in providing a $1,000 donation.

The state of California is helping out, too. On Sept. 25, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 1535, which appropriates $15 million for instructional garden programs.

“Hopefully, we’ll be able to grow a garden that’s self-sufficient because gardens are so cool for students,” Aguilera said of what he wants to do with the money. “They are relaxing and get the kids to talk about the things they’re learning, as if a Zen awareness develops within them.”